Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine trends in online postings about at-home VR users’ simulator sickness coping strategies. Virtual reality devices have gained in popularity, with an estimated 8% of people having a dedicated VR headset at home. These devices, referred to as head-mounted displays (HMDs), can be used for gaming, education, and social purposes at home. One of the challenges associated with these devices is the incidence of simulator sickness that people experience when wearing them, particularly for extended periods of time. 310 comments from Reddit forums specifically about simulator sickness in gamers were analyzed. A total of eight themes emerged in reporting coping strategies: behavioral methods, cognitive methods, schedule-based exposure, pharmacological/dietary methods, environmental factors, avoiding games that were sickening, and identifying computer system factors that contributed to sickness. This showed some divergence from the larger body of literature on motion sickness coping. Studying simulator sickness in VR users over time is a challenge for laboratory based work, but online communities can help bridge that gap. In the future, these known strategies could be used to inform VR users of coping methods and improve games that are particularly nauseating.
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